Who is the Holy Spirit? - In Us
The Holy Spirit is the third Person of the Trinity, and our relationship with Him is a vital part of Christian living.
THE HOLY SPIRIT BRINGS FREEDOM
Romans 8:1–4 (NLT) “So now there is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus. And because you belong to him, the power of the life-giving Spirit has freed
you from the power of sin that leads to death. The law of Moses was unable to save us because of the weakness of our sinful nature. So God did what the law could not do. He sent his own Son in a body like the bodies we sinners have. And in that body God declared an end to sin’s control over us by giving his Son as a sacrifice for our sins. He did this so that the just requirement of the law would be fully satisfied for us, who no longer follow our sinful nature but instead follow the Spirit.”
“No condemnation” is incredibly freeing. Too many live with things that condemn them. Their lives are full of guilt and regret. They live by the statement, “I wish I would have . . . ”
- Freedom starts with forgiveness
- Freedom is sustained by the Spirit.
- Freedom is strengthened by your daily experiences with the Spirit.
Acts 2:42–47 (NLT) “All the believers devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching, and to fellowship, and to sharing in meals (including the Lord’s Supper), and to prayer. A deep sense of awe came over them all, and the apostles performed many miraculous signs and wonders. And all the believers met together in one place and shared everything they had. They sold their property and possessions and shared the money with those in need. They worshiped together at the Temple each day, met in homes for the Lord’s Supper, and shared their meals with great joy and generosity—all the while praising God and enjoying the goodwill of all the people. And each day the Lord added to their fellowship those who were being saved.”
Having a church family frees you from the pressures of serving Christ alone. It allows you to have fellowship with believers, grow in knowledge of the Word, serve Christ with friends, share your faith to those in your pathway, and worship God in spirit and in truth.
THE HOLY SPIRIT BRINGS PEACE
This is good news because everyone is looking for peace.
Romans 8:6–8 (NLT) “So letting your sinful nature control your mind leads to death. But letting the Spirit control your mind leads to life and peace. For the sinful nature is always hostile to God. It never did obey God’s laws, and it never will. That’s why those who are still under the control of their sinful nature can never please God.”
Everyone is looking for peace of mind these days. People will do anything, spend anything, and go anywhere just to get it. Having peace of mind comes from the Spirit. So, who or what occupies your mind? Whatever space in your life that God gets, will have peace; whatever space God gets eliminated from, probably won’t have peace, but will likely be dominated by fear.
There are several things in life that attempt to steal our peace of mind (Peace Thieves).
- Uncontrollable circumstances
- Unchangeable people
- Unanticipated problems
How does the Holy Spirit bring peace?
- The Holy Spirit helps you accept what you can’t control.
John 14:26–27 (ESV) “But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you. Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.”
- The Holy Spirit helps you trust God’s loving care.
Isaiah 26:3 (NLT) “You will keep in perfect peace all who trust in you, all whose thoughts are fixed on you!”
The Holy Spirit helps you surrender to God’s control.
One of the reasons why some people don’t have the “peace of mind” that comes from the Spirit is that they are actually fighting against God.
Psalm 119:165 (NLT) “Those who love your instruction have great peace and do not stumble.”
THE HOLY SPIRIT BRINGS FELLOWSHIP
Consider the Trinity. God makes himself known to us in three persons. Each person of the Trinity interacts with us in different ways. The three persons of the Trinity have fellowship with one another; in other words, they are intimately related to each other and act cooperatively.
2 Corinthians 13:14 (NLT) “May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.”
What does “fellowship of the Spirit” mean?
- It means the Holy Spirit wants friendship. He is a catalyst for helping us understand that God is not some distant deity that we can’t connect with, but He wants a personal, intimate friendship with us. He has always wanted this.
Genesis 1:1–2 (NLT) “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was formless and empty, and darkness covered the deep waters. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the surface of the waters.”
God has always been at work to be involved in a relationship with us.
- At creation, God breathed the breath of life into Adam and started a relationship with humanity.
- At the cross, Jesus died so we could be forgiven and in right relationship with Him.
- He’s now preparing a place in heaven for us so we can be eternally in relationship with Him. Even when we are not aware, He’s already been making plans and working on it.
Fellowship with the Holy Spirit involves sharing our lives in communion with Him. It’s opening the deepest parts of our personality (thoughts, motives, feelings, attitudes, decisions, future, fears, passions) to the influence and direction of God’s Spirit. This fellowship helps us to avoid the sins against the Spirit (envy, jealousy, selfish ambition, sexual immorality) and develop the character traits that reflect the fruit of the Spirit (love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control).
APPLY IT TODAY
If life feels out of order: Psalm 104:30 (NLT) “When you send your Spirit, new life is created, and you renew all the living of the earth.
If life feels dry: Ezekiel 37:14 (NIV) “I will put my Spirit in you and you will live, and I will settle you in your own land.”
If life feels overwhelming: Romans 8:26 (NIV) “In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans.”
THE HOLY SPIRIT BRINGS FREEDOM
Romans 8:1–4 (NLT) “So now there is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus. And because you belong to him, the power of the life-giving Spirit has freed
you from the power of sin that leads to death. The law of Moses was unable to save us because of the weakness of our sinful nature. So God did what the law could not do. He sent his own Son in a body like the bodies we sinners have. And in that body God declared an end to sin’s control over us by giving his Son as a sacrifice for our sins. He did this so that the just requirement of the law would be fully satisfied for us, who no longer follow our sinful nature but instead follow the Spirit.”
“No condemnation” is incredibly freeing. Too many live with things that condemn them. Their lives are full of guilt and regret. They live by the statement, “I wish I would have . . . ”
- Freedom starts with forgiveness
- Freedom is sustained by the Spirit.
- Freedom is strengthened by your daily experiences with the Spirit.
Acts 2:42–47 (NLT) “All the believers devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching, and to fellowship, and to sharing in meals (including the Lord’s Supper), and to prayer. A deep sense of awe came over them all, and the apostles performed many miraculous signs and wonders. And all the believers met together in one place and shared everything they had. They sold their property and possessions and shared the money with those in need. They worshiped together at the Temple each day, met in homes for the Lord’s Supper, and shared their meals with great joy and generosity—all the while praising God and enjoying the goodwill of all the people. And each day the Lord added to their fellowship those who were being saved.”
Having a church family frees you from the pressures of serving Christ alone. It allows you to have fellowship with believers, grow in knowledge of the Word, serve Christ with friends, share your faith to those in your pathway, and worship God in spirit and in truth.
THE HOLY SPIRIT BRINGS PEACE
This is good news because everyone is looking for peace.
Romans 8:6–8 (NLT) “So letting your sinful nature control your mind leads to death. But letting the Spirit control your mind leads to life and peace. For the sinful nature is always hostile to God. It never did obey God’s laws, and it never will. That’s why those who are still under the control of their sinful nature can never please God.”
Everyone is looking for peace of mind these days. People will do anything, spend anything, and go anywhere just to get it. Having peace of mind comes from the Spirit. So, who or what occupies your mind? Whatever space in your life that God gets, will have peace; whatever space God gets eliminated from, probably won’t have peace, but will likely be dominated by fear.
There are several things in life that attempt to steal our peace of mind (Peace Thieves).
- Uncontrollable circumstances
- Unchangeable people
- Unanticipated problems
How does the Holy Spirit bring peace?
- The Holy Spirit helps you accept what you can’t control.
John 14:26–27 (ESV) “But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you. Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.”
- The Holy Spirit helps you trust God’s loving care.
Isaiah 26:3 (NLT) “You will keep in perfect peace all who trust in you, all whose thoughts are fixed on you!”
The Holy Spirit helps you surrender to God’s control.
One of the reasons why some people don’t have the “peace of mind” that comes from the Spirit is that they are actually fighting against God.
Psalm 119:165 (NLT) “Those who love your instruction have great peace and do not stumble.”
THE HOLY SPIRIT BRINGS FELLOWSHIP
Consider the Trinity. God makes himself known to us in three persons. Each person of the Trinity interacts with us in different ways. The three persons of the Trinity have fellowship with one another; in other words, they are intimately related to each other and act cooperatively.
2 Corinthians 13:14 (NLT) “May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.”
What does “fellowship of the Spirit” mean?
- It means the Holy Spirit wants friendship. He is a catalyst for helping us understand that God is not some distant deity that we can’t connect with, but He wants a personal, intimate friendship with us. He has always wanted this.
Genesis 1:1–2 (NLT) “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was formless and empty, and darkness covered the deep waters. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the surface of the waters.”
God has always been at work to be involved in a relationship with us.
- At creation, God breathed the breath of life into Adam and started a relationship with humanity.
- At the cross, Jesus died so we could be forgiven and in right relationship with Him.
- He’s now preparing a place in heaven for us so we can be eternally in relationship with Him. Even when we are not aware, He’s already been making plans and working on it.
Fellowship with the Holy Spirit involves sharing our lives in communion with Him. It’s opening the deepest parts of our personality (thoughts, motives, feelings, attitudes, decisions, future, fears, passions) to the influence and direction of God’s Spirit. This fellowship helps us to avoid the sins against the Spirit (envy, jealousy, selfish ambition, sexual immorality) and develop the character traits that reflect the fruit of the Spirit (love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control).
APPLY IT TODAY
If life feels out of order: Psalm 104:30 (NLT) “When you send your Spirit, new life is created, and you renew all the living of the earth.
If life feels dry: Ezekiel 37:14 (NIV) “I will put my Spirit in you and you will live, and I will settle you in your own land.”
If life feels overwhelming: Romans 8:26 (NIV) “In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans.”
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